Andre Deputy Executed For 2 Murders

Andre Deputy was executed by the State of Delaware for the murders of a man and woman

According to court documents Andre Deputy would go to the home and ask for money for alcohol. When the couple refused to give him money Deputy would attack them with a knife and a bayonet killing both of them

Andre Deputy would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Andre Deputy would be executed by lethal injection on June 23 1994

Andre Deputy FAQ

Andre Deputy Case

arly in the morning of February 7, 1979, the Delaware State Police, stationed at Troop 5 in Bridgeville, received a report of an apparent double homicide west of Harrington, Delaware.

Detectives Chaffinch and Calloway responded to the report. When they arrived, police officers from the Harrington Police Department were already at the scene, along with the decedents’ son, Arthur B. Smith, who had discovered the bodies of his parents, Byard and Alberta Smith, upon entering the house.

His parents, an elderly couple, had been brutally stabbed to death. Mr. Smith, who was 68 years old, 5’6″ tall and weighed 150 lbs., had received 79 separate stab wounds. His wife, who was 69 years old, weighed 70 lbs. and was 5’4″ tall, had sustained 66 separate stab wounds. The wounds each victim sustained varied in size. From the size of the wounds, the medical examiner was subsequently able to determine that each had been stabbed with two weapons a bayonet-type knife and a smaller knife.

The police found certain items missing from the couple’s home. First, Smith had noticed that his father’s car was missing from the driveway. The television set was also gone, its antenna cable apparently cut with a knife. Bags of frozen food were strewn about the scene. Police found the watchband pin of a watch as well.

While they were investigating the scene, the two detectives received a report that the car belonging to the deceased had been located north of Felton, Delaware. Interviews of Felton area residents yielded a description of the man believed to have abandoned the car earlier that morning. A Smith family member told police that the description matched that of William Henry Flamer, a nephew of the deceased who lived near the Smith residence with his grandmother and the defendant, Deputy.

When the detectives went to Flamer’s home, his grandmother told them that Flamer was not there; nor, did she have any knowledge of his whereabouts. She permitted police to search the second floor of the house for Flamer. They discovered brown paper bags containing items of frozen food similar to those found at the Smith residence. In addition, the police seized a bayonet, stained with what appeared to be dried blood, and a bayonet sheath. In a first-floor closet, the detectives found a television set, the cable from which matched the piece of cut antenna cable left in the Smith residence.

Based on this evidence, the detectives obtained a warrant for Flamer’s arrest. While at Justice of the Peace Court 6, the detectives received a report that Flamer had been seen at the Blue Moon Tavern, south of Woodside, Delaware, on Route 13. Three State police detectives, accompanied by two Harrington police officers, drove to the Blue Moon Tavern.

One of the detectives recognized Flamer, walking down Route 13 with two companions, Ellsworth Coleman and the defendant, Andre Stanley Deputy. All three were stopped and frisked for weapons; although the police felt a wallet in Deputy’s back pocket, they did not remove it. All three were read Miranda warnings. Flamer was arrested pursuant to the warrant. When asked if he had any identification, Deputy replied that he did not. When asked his name, Deputy replied in an “evasive” manner, lying about his identity, although the police were unaware of the misrepresentation at the time. All three were taken into custody at 3:15 p.m. and were transported to Troop 5, arriving at 4:00 p.m.

Upon arriving at Troop 5, Flamer told the police that Deputy had awakened him that morning and asked him to accompany *586 Deputy to the Smith house to remove some food. There, Flamer said, he found the Smiths dead. At the same time, other detectives interrogated Deputy. He was read his Miranda rights, which he indicated he understood. When asked if he wished to see an attorney, Deputy made no response. In Deputy’s coat pocket, police found a wallet belonging to Byard Smith. They also found two watches, one of which was missing its watchband pin. Deputy told police that Flamer had given him the wallet.

Based on Flamer’s statement and Deputy’s possession of the victim’s wallet and watch, which was missing a watchband pin like the one found at the scene, Andre Deputy was arrested at approximately 4:30 p.m.

Because Flamer and Andre Deputy had given conflicting stories as to the other’s involvement in the murders, police continued their questioning. At approximately 6:00 p.m., Flamer revealed Deputy’s true identity and stated that Wilmington police had an outstanding murder warrant for Deputy’s arrest. After verifying that information, the State Police arrested Deputy on that warrant at approximately 7:00 p.m. The police then provided dinner for the two men.

During questioning that evening, Andre Deputy told Detective Chaffinch that he was telling the truth. Chaffinch did not believe him, however, and asked Deputy to take a polygraph test. Deputy agreed. Due to a snow storm[2] and Detective Chaffinch’s desire to question him further, Deputy did not make his initial appearance before a judicial officer that day[3] and was held overnight at the Bridgeville Police Department.

The police transported Andre Deputy to Troop 5 at approximately 9:00 the next morning. A polygraph test was administered two hours later. Before undergoing the test, Deputy signed a written form acknowledging the Miranda warnings. He did not request a lawyer.[4] When the examiner told Deputy that he had failed the polygraph, Deputy told police that he had accompanied Flamer to the Smith’s residence to obtain some money. When an argument ensued, Flamer began stabbing Byard Smith. Alberta Smith had begged Deputy to stop the attack, but Deputy did nothing and went home. Detective Chaffinch then taped Deputy’s statement.

Detective Chaffinch took Andre Deputy before the Justice of the Peace for his initial appearance at approximately 2:00 p.m. At that hearing, Deputy was again read his Miranda rights and told of the penalties he faced.[5] The Justice of the Peace then committed Deputy to the Sussex Correctional Institute (hereinafter “S.C.I.”), in default of bail.

https://law.justia.com/cases/delaware/supreme-court/1985/500-a-2d-581-4.html